Music to strip to … need ideas

[Writer61]

I am working on something at the moment which includes a young English woman stripping in a Paris night-club approx 1980. I would like it to be some contemporary music, ideally British. Similarly for 10 years later when she does a repeat performance.

I am hampered by chronic lackus rhythmus. Any suggestions?

TIA

 

[lovecraft68]

I was going to give you a list of songs I've used in the past, but they're 'US hits" and not sure what their play was in the UK. I also know little contemporary music.

But if you go to google and type in "stripper playlists" you get a ton of options and you can add UK and music genres to see if it fine tunes.

I can say "Pour some sugar on me" seems to be a classic staple at strip clubs and hasn't gone out of style.

 

[AllenWoody]

Hungry Like the Wolf (Duran Duran) was released in the UK in early 1982.

 

[HordHolm]

I am working on something at the moment which includes a young English woman stripping in a Paris night-club approx 1980. I would like it to be some contemporary music, ideally British. Similarly for 10 years later when she does a repeat performance.

I am hampered by chronic lackus rhythmus. Any suggestions?

TIA

How contemporary to c. 1980 do you want to get?

A lot of US disco crossed over the Atlantic. Not all of it is suitable, by any means, but some certainly was. As for British music, we had just had punk/new wave, which wasn't particularly ideal for sensuous strip-shows, but UK dance music was just starting to get going in the early 80s. If you want something a couple of years later then you could consider Culture Club "Do you really want to hurt me", or pushing it to 1983 you get Frankie "Relax".

Going to the early 90s there's an embarrassment of riches with UK dance music, bundles of it, from Stock, Aitken, and Waterman four on the floor teeny-bop (Kylie, Jason, etc), though that might be a bit 'clean' for what you want, and there's also so much, rave, techno, acid, etc that it's almost beyond count, but again that's surely outside your requirements. For early 90s I would suggest getting a bit retro and sticking with more mid 80s tracks.

 

[SimonDoom]

1980 was a transition year so it's a bit tricky. Disco was starting to fade and be replaced by the 80s dance sound. I have no idea what they would have listened to in Paris. You probably could find out with some research.

 

[AwkwardMD]

I was going to give you a list of songs I've used in the past, but they're 'US hits" and not sure what their play was in the UK. I also know little contemporary music.

But if you go to google and type in "stripper playlists" you get a ton of options and you can add UK and music genres to see if it fine tunes.

I can say "Pour some sugar on me" seems to be a classic staple at strip clubs and hasn't gone out of style.

Released in '87.

Motörhead's Ace of Spades

 

[HordHolm]

Looking a bit more at the 'ten years later' performance and you have, not UK but US, one of the ultimate tracks for this: Madonna, "Justify my Love", released in 1990.

 

[Voboy]

1980 was a transition year so it's a bit tricky. Disco was starting to fade and be replaced by the 80s dance sound. I have no idea what they would have listened to in Paris. You probably could find out with some research.

I think this is your problem, OP.

When people (readers, really) think "eighties music," they're probably not actually thinking of 1980. 1980 didn't have a whole lot of eighties music in it.

If you're willing to set your first dance around 1983-4, you'll be in the sweet spot for a number of excellent songs. Plenty of those will be identifiably retro during your second dance in 1993-4, but I went to a few strip clubs in 1995-7 and I can honestly say I mostly heard eighties music. Using that logic, it's possible that strippers in 1980 weren't using contemporary hits themselves; they might have used hits from ten years before, which puts you into psychadelic territory.

To be fair, I wasn't going to strip clubs in Paris. My only exposure to those is from the movie European Vacation, lol.

 

[Wonderer67]

Party in Paris by the UK Subs…came
Out in 1980

 

[HordHolm]

Another US track but which references London, and has an infectious and suitable beat might be "Werewolves of London", recorded in 1978 - so it really hits the time nicely. I suspect most clubs aren't too worried about the music being up-to-the-minute, provided it isn't too old school.

 

[SimonDoom]

The setting matters a lot too. If it's set at a fashionable Paris night club I'd guess you'd be more likely to hear electronic dance music than, say, Whitesnake or Def Leppard.

 

[Writer61]

Released in '87.

Motörhead's Ace of Spades

Love the song, but can't see anyone stripping to it.

 

[lovecraft68]

Another US track but which references London, and has an infectious and suitable beat might be "Werewolves of London", recorded in 1978 - so it really hits the time nicely. I suspect most clubs aren't too worried about the music being up-to-the-minute, provided it isn't too old school.

Not sure Werewolves of London is something to strip to. Unless you're putting it in a werewolf movie for a joke.

 

[Wonderer67]

Released in '87.

Motörhead's Ace of Spades

Ace of spades came out in 1980. So that would def apply. Maybe not the strip-iest music but def in that era.

 

[lovecraft68]

Released in '87.

Motörhead's Ace of Spades

Good song, Eat the Rich is another good one from them.

When I think of songs to strip to-um, not that I do but if I did!- need a good grinding beat.

Danzig's She Rides is one I've used in a story. Stranglehold by Nugent (he's a dick, but its a good riff)

ACDC You shook me all night long works

An oldie but goodie is Mustang Sally.

And never forget you can leave you hat on by Joe Cocker...Kim Bassinger...yeah.

 

[AwkwardMD]

Love the song, but can't see anyone stripping to it.

Trust me.

This is basically the same song, written by Dave Grohl to emulate the Motörhead sound and featuring Lemmy.

It might not be the mood you're looking for, but it's not  not an option.

 

[Writer61]

How contemporary to c. 1980 do you want to get?

I have been checking timeline against a connected story.

Needs to be pre 1982 release. So we are probably looking at something issued 1979 at very latest.

 

[Wonderer67]

Metal - came out in 81.

Squeeze, one of my favorite bands 79. Good song imo for stripping.

My sharona?

Heart of glass by Blondie?

 

[SimonDoom]

Blondie, maybe. Early Prince. Joe Cocker's You can leave your hat on is one of the all time stripper songs, and it came out in 1972, so it would work.

If you want more of a rocker sound, maybe AC/DC. Highway to Hell came out in 1979. Touch Too Much has about the right tempo.

The Cars, Moving in Stereo. The Police, Walking on the moon.

 

[SimonDoom]

Stranglehold came out mid 70s and it has the perfect tempo for stripping. I don't know if it was a hit with the French.

 

[HordHolm]

I have been checking timeline against a connected story.

Needs to be pre 1982 release. So we are probably looking at something issued 1979 at very latest.

Ok. I've had a quick scoot around the interweb for popular UK dance hits of the 70s and, as I suspected, it is overwhelmingly US music (and I know they were Brits, but I count the Bee Gees as part of a US disco invasion rather than home grown). The UK was producing some more rock/dance based tracks in the 70s, but it wasn't necessarily 'stripable' - Bowie's "Rebel, Rebel" features on a top 50 UK dance hits listing, as does "Cars" by Gary Numan (more electro-futurist, but you never know). I'm not sure these are ideal. I also had a quick look at the top French 70s tracks to see if any crossed-over to anglophone regions, but it's thin fare I'm afraid.

 

[SimonDoom]

If you want to go classic there's always David Rose's The Stripper Song.

 

[Wonderer67]

And this classic old school tune by Bill Doggett

 

[TheRedChamber]

Okay, let's get you sorted. As others have noted, once you get into the eighties proper your options open up substantially. As a challenge, I'm going to keep to anything released in 1980 or a few years before.

David Bowie released Ashes to Ashes in 1980, probably his best song, but not necessarily great stripping music. This'll do it though.

If you want something a bit more swinging, you also had Queen:

If your stripper MC likes to camp it up, you could worse than Kate Bush.

The Pretenders were a British based band despite their American singer.

The Police were fairly big. This is probably a good stripping song, just don't let Laurel see the lyrics.

 

[TheRedChamber]

If you want something more artistic and new wave, you have early Cure.

Or if your lass has a sense of humour...